artist:
Billy Joel
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album:
52nd Street
format:
SACD - Stereo
label:
Columbia
release year:
1999
performance:
6.5
sound
6
reviewed by:
Jerry Del Colliano
52nd
Street was a big success for Billy Joel in the late 1970s. While he was
in a New York state of mind, he and producer Phil Ramone were able to
muster up three big hit songs for the album including “Big Shot,”
“Honesty” and “My Life.” He solidly defined himself as the
quintessential piano bar rocker who can successfully tell a story
through music and captivate an audience. His star appeal is still
strong today, more than 20 years after his ascent to superstardom
despite a high-profile breakup with his super-model wife and a
well-publicized scandal with his management. Much as with Eric Clapton,
you’d be hard-pressed to say Billy Joel’s ups and downs in life haven’t
earned him right to really play the blues.

artist:
Jeff Beck
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album:
Blow By Blow
format:
SACD surround, Stereo
label:
Epic
release year:
2001
performance:
8
sound
7.5
reviewed by:
Jerry Del Colliano
Take one part “Debbie Does Dallas” and mix it with a little “Magnum
P.I.” and you have a good idea of what to expect from one of the more
famous guitar rock albums of all time – Blow By Blow from Jeff Beck.
Clearly the inspiration for the character Nigel in the immortal film
This Is Spinal Tap, Beck is respected to this day by generations of
guitarists for his impressive runs and rock-meets-jazz fusion sound.

artist:
Bucky Pizzarelli
album:
Swing Live
format:
DVD-Audio & SACD
label:
Chesky Records
release year:
2001
performance:
9
sound
10
reviewed by:
Richard Elen
Most
of the major record companies have by now come down on one side or the
other of the War of the High-Quality Audio Discs, with some opting to
release Super Audio CD product (notably Sony) and others deciding on
the competing DVD-A format (such as Warner Brothers). Still others have
announced their intention to do one or the other but have not yet ruled
out both.

artist:
Tchaikovsky
album:
1812 Overture Performed by Erich Kunzel; Cincinnati Pops Orchestra; Kiev Symphony Chorus; Children’s Choir of Greater Cincinnati
format:
DVD-A & Hybrid Multichannel SACD
label:
Chesky Records
release year:
2001
performance:
9
sound
10
reviewed by:
Richard Elen
Caution! DSD Cannons!
Telarc International made recording history in 1978 when they used
digital audio technology to record the 1812 Overture for an album that
essentially launched the company. The album – apparently the first
digitally recorded and mixed project – was a landmark in many ways.
With its live cannons and astonishing dynamic range, it quickly became
the ultimate demo disc – and the ultimate test for a home sound system.

An Introduction to SACD,
Chesky Records, 2001
| Performance 9 | Sound 9 |
Grammy
Award-winning Chesky Records was founded in 1978 by composer/musician
David Chesky and his brother and business partner Norman, in New York.
Norman recalls: "We wanted to please both musical connoisseurs and the
high-end audiophiles by signing some of the best musicians in the
world, and then capturing their live performances with the latest and
best technology." Adds David, "I would walk into a recording studio and
see fifty microphones set up. When I realized that people don't hear
music that way, and that musicians play differently when they are
recorded like that, I decided that if we ever started a company, it was
going to have a different and unique recording philosophy."